Looseleaf binder

ABSTRACT

A flexible post looseleaf binder having compression slides slidable in a channel. The channel end stops for preventing the slides from being removed through the ends of the channel are provided by end caps each having a body portion which is pressed into the open end of the channel and which is substantially permanently latched in place. The end caps also shield the sharp ends of the channel to prevent injury to the user.

United. States Patent 1191 [1111 3,829,225 Dooiittle Aug. 13, 1974 1 LOOSELEAF BINDER 3,224,450 12/1965 Whittemore 402/17 3,263,689 8/1966 Lind ren 1 [75] Inventor: sprmgfield, M9 3,285,251 11/1966 lvory 402/17 [73] Assignee: Litton Business Systems, line,

Springfield, M0. Primary Examiner-Wm. H. Grieb V I Filed: Feb 1972 Attorney, Agent, or Fzrm-Norman Friedman [21] App]. N0.: 230,005 [57] ABSTRACT A flexible post looseleaf binder having compression [52] us. Cl. 402/17 Slides Slidable in a chamel- The channel end pfor 51 1m. 01 B421 13/00 preventing the slides from being removed through the 58 Field of Search 402/17, 15, 14 ends of the Channel are Provided y end p each having a body portion which is pressed into the open 5 References Cited end of the channel and which is substantially perma- UNITED STATES PATENTS nently latched in place. The end caps also shield the sharp ends of the channel to prevent injury to the 507,478 10/1893 Bowry 402/17 user 1,242,018 10/1917 Miller 402/17 X 2,339, 11 1 1/1944 Kern 402/15 6 Claims, 6 Drawing Figures LOOSELEAF BINDER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION tion. Such mechanisms are sometimes known as compression mechanism. They customarily include slides slidable along a channel or the equivalent to and from a position overlying and thereby holding down the bent-over flexible posts.

The channels are customarily provided in the form of long strips of sheet metal bent to the desired channel shape, which are then cut into individual lengths of a size appropriate to the individual binders. To provide end stops to prevent the slides from inadvertently being slid out through the open ends of the channel, the channel ends are deformed by being laterally bent. This latter step of course requires an additional manufacturing step, and involves the use of additional metal working equipment. Furthermore, the exposed cut opposite ends of the channel are sharp. Therefore, they must be further filed or ground to remove the sharp edges. More usually, however, they are left in their relatively sharp, cut condition, thereby presenting an opportunity for the user of the binder to cut himself.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In accordance with the present invention, the channels, instead of being laterally bent to provide end stops for the compression slides, are provided with an end cap having a body portion which is pressed into the open end of the channel. The body of the end cap is preferably configured to mate closely with the interior cross sectional contour of the channel to fit snugly therein. The end cap includes an outermost head portion the inner face of which fits snugly against the outermost transverse end of the channel and thereby shields the sharp, cut channel end edges from the user whereby he cannot be injured by inadvertent contact with these sharpedges.

Upon full insertion thereof into the channel, the end cap is substantially permanently latched in place. This latching is effected by a tongue struck up from the base of the channel and adapted to snap behind a latching shoulder formed on the underside of the end cap.

Preferably, the entire end cap is formed as a single integral molded unit.

It is therefore a primary object of the present invention to provide, in a flexible post looseleaf binderhaving a compression slide slidably along a channel or the like, a novel end stop for the channel to prevent the slide from being removed from the end of the channel. It is a further object to provide such an end stop in the form of an end cap having a body portion insertable into the end of the channel.

I It is a further object to provide such an end cap adapted to be latched inits inserted position in the channel.

It is a further object to provide an end cap having a head portion which shields the sharp ends of the channel to prevent injury to the user of the binder.

The above and other objects, advantages, and features of the invention will become apparent to those of ordinary skill in the relevant art when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a looseleaf binder incorporating the novel compression slide of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary enlarged top plan view showing one of the end caps mounted. in the channel.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken on line IIIIII of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken on line lV-IV of FIG. 2.

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of the end cap.

FIG. 6 is an end elevational view showing the end cap mounted in the channel.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Referring particularly to FIGS. 1 3 of the drawings, the reference numerals 2 and 4 designate conventional binder covers of one typical form. Mounted in the binder on conventional binder posts 6 are a number of looseleaf sheets 8. The sheets 8 as shown herein are computer print-out tab. sheets. However, it will be understood that the principles of the invention are applicable to diverse forms of looseleaf binders, and'for containing any desired kind of looseleaf sheet.

The binder posts 6 are typically made of nylon and comprise an enlarged diameter head 10 and elongated flexible body portion 12. The body and head portions are joined together by a short substantially cylindrical portion 14 of larger diameter than the body portion, and an intermediate tapered portion 16.

Reference numeral 18 designates elongated upper and lower channel members generally of the type used with this kind of binder. Each of the channel members, which are usually made of metal, comprises a base portion 20, and upwardly and outwardly extending side wall portions 22 which terminate in inwardly extending tumed-over flange portions 24.

The bases 20 of channels 18, as well as the underlying portions 26, 28 of the binder covers 2 and 4 are provided with corresponding rows of longitudinally ar ranged holes 30, 32, and 34 respectively. If desired, each channel member 18 may be permanently secured to its related cover member, as by rivets 36.

In use, each binder post is passed through one of the holes in one of the cover members, e.g., 2, and its associated channel member 18, then through the holes 38 in the looseleaf sheets 8, then through the corresponding aligned holes in the other cover member 4 and its associated channel member. The flexible body portion 12 of each binder post is then bent downwardly to lie along the adjacent channel member base portion 20, and it is held in this position by an associated compression slide 40. I

The short enlarged diameter portions 14 of the binder posts 6 are preferably in a press fit relationship with the holes 30 in channel member base portion 20 so as to prevent the posts from inadvertently working loose. The tapered post portion 16 just inwardly of portion 14 merely serves as a lead-in to enable the posts to be fully inserted through the channel holes 30 without undue difficulty.

The binder posts 6 can be inserted either from above or below, the upper and lower channel members 18 being identical. As shown in FIGS. 1 3, the posts have been inserted from below and the compression slides .40 are therefore provided on'the upper channel. How

ever, it will be understood that if the posts are inserted from above, then the slides 40 will be provided on the lower channel.

The slides 40 form no part of the present invention. Rather, they are the subject of another pending US. Pat. application Ser. No. 229,831 filed Feb. 28, 1972 and having the same assignee as the present application. For the purposes of the present disclosure, it will suffice to say that the slide is so constructed that when it is in a first angular position, it may be freely inserted into the top opening of channel 18. After insertion of the slide, it is then rotated to another, second angular position. This rotational movement of the slide brings abutment or ledge portions thereof into effective blocked relation with and underlying the flanges 24 of the channel. As a result, the slide is held against inadvertent removal from the channel. When it is desired to remove the slide from the channel, the foregoing process is reversed.

Each channel 18 is of uniform cross-section from end toend, asdistinguished from prior art devices in which the channels are bent inwardly at their opposite ends to form end stops for the slides. For the two purposes of both providing such end'stops in the channel, and also shielding the rather'sharp end edges of the channel so that a user will not injure himself, there are provided channel end caps 100.

Each end cap 100 comprises a body portion 102 contoured to fit snugly within the channel, and a head 104 which is adapted to abut the outer end edges of the channel and is of sufficient length and width to completely shield those edges. Head 104 is provided with smoothly rounded edges to avoid cutting the user.

The end cap body portion 102 comprises a central member 106 having an uppermost surface 108 which slopes downwardly from the top edge of head 104. At its opposite sides, the body portion 102 include upwardly sloping wings or flanges 110, 112. Their slope angle is substantially the same as the slope angle of the channel sidewalls 22 relative to the channel base 20. Grooves or slots 114 and 116 separate the lastmentioned wings or flanges 110, 112 from the central portion 106 of the body portion.

On its underside, the end cap is provided with a blind slot 118 extending inwardly from and through the head 104 and into the body portion 106. To firmly secure or latch the cap to the channel, the base of the latter is provided adjacent each of its ends with an upstruck sloping tongue 120. When the body portion 102 of the end cap is inserted into the open end of channel 18, the

inner end of the cap body portion presses the inherently resilient upstruck tongue 120 downwardly into the hole in the channel base 20 from which the tongue was struck. The tongue is so held down by the cap until the cap is fully inserted into the channel. At this point,

the inherent resiliency of the tongue will cause the latter to snap upwardly into slot 118 formed in the underside of the cap (see FIG. 3). In this final assembled position of the end cap in the channel, the outside faces of the end cap wings 110, 112 firmly grip the inside of the channel walls 22. Also, the turned-over channel flanges 24 extend over and grip the upper edges of the v end cap Wings 110,- 112, and also extend downwardly into the grooves or spaces 114, 116 provided in the end cap between the aforesaid wings and the central major body portion of the end cap.

inner end wall of blind slot 118.

The aforedescribed novel end caps are not limited in their application to use with the novel slides described herein, but can be used with any type of compression slide.

Both the slides 40 and the end caps 100 may be formed in any suitable way of any suitable material. Preferably, they are each molded as a single integral unit of any suitable synthetic resin material, such as a resilient nylon.

While there is shown and described herein a preferred embodiment of the invention, it will be understood that in practice, the invention and its various features can be practiced in numerous diverse forms. Accordingly, it is intended that the foregoing disclosure be illustrative only and not in any way limitative of the following claims.

1 claim:

1. In a looseleaf binder having track means comprising wall means defining a longitudinally extending space having a top opening thereinto, said space being open at at least one end thereof at a transverse end of said wall means; and a slide member adapted to be slidably mounted on said track means for sliding longitudinal movement along said space relative to said spaced wall means:

an end member having a body portion configured to be inserted into and closely received in said longitudinally extending space through said open end thereof, to block said slide member against movement out of said space through said open end; said end member including an outermost head portion fast with said body portion; said head portion having at least one transverse, width dimension greater than the corresponding transverse, width dimension of said open end of said space, whereby said head portion will be blocked by said wall means from entering said space; said body portion of said end member including at least one longitudinally extending lateral flange, said flange being bounded along its inner side by a groove, said groove being adapted to receive therein a portion of said wall means when said body portion of said end member is inserted into said open end of said space. 2. The device according to claim 1, wherein:

said groove is open at its end furthest from said outermost head portion; and means blocking the opposite end of the groove. 3. The device according to claim 2, wherein: said blocking means comprises portions of said outermost head portion. I 4. In a looseleaf binder having track means comprising wall means defining alongitudinally extending space having a top opening thereinto, said space being open at at least one end thereof at a transverse end of said wall means; and a slide member adapted to be slidably mounted on said track means for sliding longitudinal movement along said space relative to said spaced wall means:

t '5 an end member having a body portion configured to be inserted intoand closely received in said longitudinally extending space through said open end thereof, to block said slide member against movement out of said space through said open end; said 'end member including an outermost head portion fast with said body portion; said head portion having at least one transverse, width dimension greater than the corresponding transverse, width dimension of said open end of said space, whereby said head portion will be blocked by said wall means from entering said space;

derside of said end member. 

1. In a looseleaf binder having track means comprising wall means defining a longitudinally extending space having a top opening thereinto, said space being open at at least one end thereof at a transverse end of said wall means; and a slide member adapted to be slidably mounted on said track means for sliding longitudinal movement along said space relative to said spaced wall means: an end member having a body portion configured to be inserted into and closely received in said longitudinally extending space through said open end thereof, to block said slide member against movement out of said space through said open end; said end member including an outermost head portion fast with said body portion; said head portion having at least one transverse, width dimension greater than the corresponding transverse, width dimension of said open end of said space, whereby said head portion will be blocked by said wall means from entering said space; said body portion of said end member including at least one longitudinally extending lateral flange, said flange being bounded along its inner side by a groove, said groove being adapted to receive therein a portion of said wall means when said body portion of said end member is inserted into said open end of said space.
 2. The device according to claim 1, wherein: said groove is open at its end furthest from said outermost head portion; and means blocking the opposite end of the groove.
 3. The device according to claim 2, wherein: said blocking means comprises portions of said outermost head portion.
 4. In a looseleaf binder having track means comprising wall means defining a longitudinally extending space having a top opening thereinto, said space being open at at least one end thereof at a transverse end of said wall means; and a slide member adapted to be slidably mounted on said track means for sliding longitudinal movement along said space relative to said spaced wall means: an end member having a body portion configured to be inserted into and closely received in said longitudinally extending space through said open end thereof, to block said slide member against movement out of said space through said open end; said end member including an outermost head portion fast with said body portion; said head portion having at least one transverse, width dimension greater than the corresponding transverse, width dimension of said open end of said space, whereby said head portion will be blocked by said wall means from entering said space; a latching member extending laterally into said space from said wall means adjacent said open end of said space; said end member including means cooperable with said latching member to hold said end member latched in position inserted into said space.
 5. The device according to claim 4, wherein: said means cooperable with said latching member comprises a positive latching shoulder.
 6. The device according to claim 4, wherein: said positive latching shoulder is provided on the underside of said end member. 